Jonathan Frid
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John Herbert Frid, who was born on December 2, 1924 in Hamilton, Ontario Canada, is a noted theater, television and movie actor. He is most famously known for the role of Barnabas Collins - a vampire - on the first incarnation of the Gothic TV serial Dark Shadows.
Frid was initially brought on Dark Shadows to help rescue flagging television ratings. The role of Barnabas Collins was originally intended to be a brief one, but the popularity of Jonathan Frid's vampire and the improvement to the ratings resulted in the character continuing on and becoming one of the "core" characters of the show. He also played Bramwell Collins toward the end of show's run.
He later reprised his role as Barnabas Collins in the 1970 big-screen adaptation, "House of Dark Shadows".
In 1973, Jonathan Frid appeared in the TV movie "The Devil's Daughter" starring Shelley Winters, and the following year starred in Oliver Stone's directorial debut, "Seizure" (aka "Queen of Evil"). He also continued to work in theater.
He began performing readings at Dark Shadows fan conventions in the 1980's, which led to the development of his one-man reader's theater shows, which were performed throughout the 1990's. In 1986, he appeared in Arsenic and Old Lace, which also starred '70s television actresses Marion Ross and Jean Stapleton.